Cerebral Palsy Effects and Symptoms

Share This:

Cerebral palsy effects can range from mild to severe and respond to a wide variety of treatments. Cerebral palsy effects depend on the type and severity of the brain damage that caused the cerebral palsy (CP).

CP is a group of conditions of the brain and nervous system that impairs functions like movement, cognition, sight, and possibly hearing. CP is a disability resulting from injury to the brain before, during or shortly after birth. CP is often associated with: low levels of oxygen in the brain (hypoxia), prematurity, bleeding in the brain, brain infections, head injury, infections in the mother during pregnancy, and severe jaundice. In some cases, these causes could be the result of negligent medical care, or improper care by your doctor, midwife or nurse during the birth process.

Birth injuries like CP are common in children. They affect up to seven out of every 1000 births every year.

Some cerebral palsy effects include

Lazy or cross eye (strabismus)

Paralysis

Difficulty sitting, standing or walking

Contracted joints in arms, legs or trunk

Inability to speak

Muscle weakness sometimes described as “floppy”

Muscle tightness or spasticity

Seizures

While cerebral palsy effects will never go away completely, there are effective treatments that can make a child’s life more active and comfortable.

Treatments for Cerebral Palsy Effects

Cerebral palsy care can include:

Physical therapy for infants to stretch tight muscles and help prevent deformities. A cerebral palsy physical therapist can train your older child to use adaptive equipment, which includes everything from cerebral palsy wheelchairs to adapting the sink and toilet to your older child’s needs.

Medications such as muscle relaxants help to relax stiff contracted muscles. Children who experience seizures might need anticonvulsant medications to treat them.

Surgery for severe physical disabilities can lengthen tendons of stiff muscles and cut some nerve roots in the spinal cord to reduce spasticity.

Cerebral Palsy and Medical Negligence

Unfortunately, some cases of cerebral palsy happen because of medical negligence. If you think this may have happened in your case, call a nurse case manager at Sokolove Law today. Even if your baby has not been diagnosed with cerebral palsy but you suspect a birth injury, call today. A nurse case manager is available to listen to you and help you explore your options, which may include a birth injury lawsuit.

Cerebral palsy effects can be expensive to treat. Birth injury lawsuits can help pay for your child’s care and possibly prevent a similar tragedy from happening to another family. There is no cost to you for us to represent you and your family in a birth injury lawsuit. Sokolove Law only gets paid if you receive money from your case.